Behold the Man

Though it is a debating topic as to whether the thrash metal revival ever fully petered out, by the time the early 2010s had unfolded, it was fairly clear that a lot of the consequential acts coming out of Europe and the U.S. were starting to lose some steam, underscored by the lack of output by a number of key players. Though Italian-based label Punishment 18 Records was continuing to field a number of Italian and German acts that were keeping things going, there was a sudden influx of highly competent bands coming out of Spain that were all but threatening to supplant the rest of the European scene. Spearheaded by the cartoonish lyrical antics yet highly engaging offerings of Crisix, along with a few highly potent smaller players like Overdead and Exekution, a scene within the broader scene was quickly morphing into a force to be reckoned with from pit to shining mosh pit. All that this suddenly booming thrash explosion lacked with a fold of technicians that would put more of a virtuoso take on things, and this deficit was redressed quite auspiciously with the entry of Maracena-based tech. thrashers Abductum onto the map.

Whereas much of the comedic and occasionally morbid deeds of their Spanish comrades lent itself more to a mishmash of Tankard, Exodus and Nuclear Assault influences, this band seemed more focused on a more serious pursuit of things beyond the earth's atmosphere, and the music follows suit with a comparably mature demeanor. Their second studio outing Behold The Man saw the departure of original vocalist Javier Puente from the fold, but in his stead, guitarist Noel Puente (assumedly his brother) opted to take up the mic and brings a highly competent blend of Dave Mustaine-inspired snarl with an expansive range and devious timbre reminiscent of Randy Rampage. Unsurprisingly, the accompanying musical display features a heavy dose of Megadeth and Annihilator influences, to the point where this quartet all but channels the essence of both Rust In Peace and Alice In Hell into a perfect 50/50 hybrid of the two. About the only thing that really deviates from the formula of either album is the general pacing of things, which is almost consistently fast and furious from start to finish, taking few occasions to pull things back into mid-paced or subdued territory.

Despite being of a fairly technical and expansive nature, the songwriting that typifies this album is compacted into a fairly stylized package, displaying a degree of discipline that results in tasteful levels of intrigue and a needed focus on things being accessible. Slamming speeders like the opening blazer "Earth's Rage", along with highly catchy yet blistering riff monsters like "Monolith" and "The Mirror Of Simple Souls" are staples of melodic thrashing excellence that could easily trade blows with any of Megadeth's more animated numbers, though also maybe veering a tad close to tribute band territory in how similarly they sound to the material of said band's golden era circa 1985-1990. But if there was one song on here that truly thrashes to a degree that leaves zero straight spinal columns in the entire pit, it's the punchy beast of an anthem "Ultra Killer Mask". Then again, an honorable mention should be given to this band's most structurally adventurous offering "The Drawn Gods", which veers a bit into ballad territory at the beginning, and along with the mystically tinged "Within The Cave", presents a more nuanced picture to go with the straightforward bruisers that dominate things.

There has been an uncanny tendency in thrash revival outfits of late to fill a very present void in the music scene, and in the particular case of Abductum, it involves basically putting out the type of album that fans of Megadeth wish that said band was still putting out. This is the sort of unrelentingly fast and furious mixture of thrashing and dueling lead guitars that has occasionally shown itself on select recent albums out of said Big 4 adherent act, but has not really been maintained to a consistent degree from start to finish ever since Dave and company got bit by the commercial bug in 1992. Even the aforementioned dueling guitar work has a very clear virtuosic flavor that lines up perfectly with the epic duels of Mustaine and Friedman that are very much missing of late, delivered up on top of a blurringly fast rhythm section that definitely takes some cues from the sort of mayhem that Jeff Waters would employ during the early days of Annihilator. The stylistic inclination of this album may be as derivative as the theme of a monolith inspiring primates to beat each other senseless with a femur that is depicted on the cover, but the end result is something too powerful for even the most fussy of listeners to deny.